Just over a decade ago, Swim Deep’s frontman Austin Williams was wistfully singing “Fuck your romance, I wanna pretend/That Jenny Lee Lindberg is my girlfriend”. Now Jenny’s joining the band. Warpaint’s bassist Jenny Lee Lindberg has teamed up with Birmingham indie pop band Swim Deep to add a dark and romantic bassline to a reworked version of the band’s debut single, 2012’s “King City”.
Listen to “King City (Jennylee’s Version)” below:
The band shared on Instagram that the cover art for the single, featuring Williams sitting in his bedroom with a clipping of Lindberg behind him, was taken during the “King City” music video shoot. Williams explained, “Plastered on my wall among other heroes of mine was a cut out of Jenny from the beat magazine i pined over, i had artists i’d look up to, and places i’d like to visit on that wall. talismans to dream next to.”
He nostalgically reminisced, “The song was about fleeing the small towns and cities i was raised in, yet keeping love and admiration for the precious youth i spent there. It was a cocky teenage coming of age anthem with a 4/4 beat which i stole from mgmt kids.”
Williams joked that he “half expected a cease and desist” when Jenny reached out to the band all these years later “but instead we got the best remix i’ve ever heard, the baseline is everything, it’s dark and sexy and i can imagine running through a festival with my mates at 17 years old to it”.
Lindberg also took to Instagram to share her excitement over the collab writing, “i love you guys! my heart feels warm and cozy. and i was super stoked to spin the wheel, and MAKE IT DARKER”.
Past and present members of Swim Deep reunited to tell tales of times past and spin records over some pints for Boogaloo radio on the 27th April. Fans got the chance to sit in during the show held in Highgate courtesy of Dork magazine.
Swim Deep are set to embark on a tour that will take them across the UK from the end of May until mid-June. The tour is in celebration of the 10th anniversary of their debut album Where The Heaven Are We – an essential for British indie kids of the 2010s. The band will be supported by a host of artists including fellow Brum-based indie rockers Jaws, former Palma Violets member Chilli Jesson, London-based trio Sad Boys Club, indie newcomers Overpass, and Irish singer/songwriter Paulric O’Meara. For remaining tickets and more information see here.
In May last year, the Californian neo-psychedelic band Warpaint, which first united on Valentine’s Day all the way back in 2004, released their fourth studio album Radiate Like This. The album was preceded by the singles “Stevie” and “Champion”. Lindberg also released her second solo album in the same month under the name jennylee. The album entitled Heart Tax included a cover of the Fugazi’s “I’m So Tired” originally recorded for Record Store Day in 2020.
See below for Swim Deep’s UK tour dates:
24/05/23 – Limelight 2 – Belfast
25/05 – Grand Social – Dublin
30/05 – Club Ifor Bach – Cardiff
31/05 – The Waterfront – Norwich
01/06 – Rescue Rooms – Nottingham
02/06 – Thekla – Bristol
04/06 – The Wardrobe – Leeds
05/06 – King Tuts Wah Wah Hut – Glasgow
06/06 – Academy 3 – Manchester
07/06 – The Haunt – Brighton
08/06 – Scala – London
09/06 – O2 Institute 2 – Birmingham
